Manning agencies urged: Speed up processing

Manning agencies urged: Speed up processing
Yashika F. Torib May 13, 2026 https://www.manilatimes.net/2026/05/13/business/maritime/manning-agencie...

THE Maritime Industry Authority (Marina) has urged licensed manning agencies (LMAs) to utilize its online Expedite System in the processing of seafarer documents.

The appeal comes after recent observation in the surge of walk-in applicants at the Marina central office.

In an official statement, Marina said that about 200 expedite applications from walk-in seafarers are being processed everyday by the agency.

“This walk-in expedite applications continue to affect the processing speed of documents. If the online system is utilized, document processing can be possibly reduced to three hours from the current seven-hour processing time,” Marina said.

As of to date, Marina records show that only 50 percent of LMAs are fully utilizing the online Expedite System.

“We continue to urge and remind LMAs to fully utilize our online Expedite System to hasten the processing of seafarer documents and avoid delays,” it said.

Marina emphasized that walk-in expedite applications were temporarily accepted only until May 8, 2026, in processing centers nationwide. This is in time with the activation of Seafarer’s Record Book (SRB) at Seafarer’s Identity Document (SID) Expedite Application System.